Reinventing the classroom

Josh Scal, Writer

CEO of Khan Academy teams up with Google to expand online learning

200 million lessons would take the normal teacher 7,300 years to complete. Sal Khan has done it in six.
Khan runs YouTube’s most popular education channel, Khan Academy. He personally records lessons ranging from computer science, to politics, to organic chemistry.
As Khan teamed up with Google last month to find and fund other internet educators, many people see online learning sites as the classroom of the future.
After quitting his job to start the non-profit organization, Khan has over four million views per month, including junior Sara Jennissen.
Jennissen said she watches the videos to reinforce what she learns in the classroom.
“It has useful videos that explain everything clearly with practice examples, ” she said.
Will Tanberg, who works in the Park Learning Lab, is more skeptical about the teaching style.
“Its a good secondary source,” he said, “but it won’t replace a real instructor that can interact in real time.”

Tanberg said with motivated students, Khan’s style works. But he questions how it could work with less diligent students.

“Some students might not pay as close attention if they’re not obligated to as in a classroom,” he said.

Yet, Tanberg said he thinks Khan Academy is a valuable resource for confused students.
“Kids are bound to get stuck on a homework problem,” he said. “It’s a great place to go to straighten things out.”